Wind estimation and accuracy of estimation over the flight path

[comfisherman]

I re read the op as opposed to my general previous response.

My tools for estimating are to watch the windy app on high resolution to get an idea of how the satellite perceives the system in the area to be hunted. I've no tool for estimating, just lots and lots of practice in scenarios we hunt. Watching various mediums of foliage move in various wind stages, and watching how it moves across terrain features.

Week ago had my hardest, northern latitude with 5 hrs of grey almost no sun sub freezing temps and an irritating swirl of relatively stout wind. Area was near void of foliage and about 5% the snow of a normal January. Ceased to be a long range hunter at thar point, and only saw what we were looking for a little past my perfect conditions range.

20 mph in a big bowl of sage in the high desert with minimal geological formation and very little speed variation is way different than the leading end of a storm on the coast. Be tough to give a specific rule of thumb. E.g. my favorite spot to hunt in the fall has a northwest wind that blows hard but the storms build slow and are relatively homogeneous in direction and velocity until they hit the point I don't like to hunt. It's the only place I've dialed for wind as it's like clock work. If it blows southeast it's anyone's guess what direction or speed that will be minute to minute.


To me the wind is one of those things that just requires time to watch and learn. It's so heavily region dependant, my buddy is spooky good at estimating speed from snow across the tundra on low horizon near artic daylight. His advice will not do a heck of a lot for me on a hot spring morning in 80 degree heat down south.

 

[slick Nick]

I think wind is one of the areas where I would like to do a LOT more training in. IT out of everything else, is the Hardest to understand and get consistency with and I sorely lack in that area. Now have I made shots in the wind however I really think it was a lucky SWAG on my part. I am seriously looking at taking a course in this soon.
I might be old but I still like to learn hahaha. This forum is good for making you think, and in some cases understand what you don't know as opposed to what you know you don't know.
Keep it up guys and thanks.
Nick

 

[R. Cram]

I shoot highpower a lot and there is only one way to learn wind calling its called shooting when ever you can at long range. I think the best item to use for wind reading is the mirage and to get the best wind guess you have to shoot and see results. I have pitched many times in this forum for people to come out and shoot in matches here when they have 600,800,900,and 1000 yd matches then you can get accurate sight settings for elevation and maybe depending on the day no wind zero's and every shot will be marked so each time you shoot you will use whatever dope you have, for me mostly the mirage and shoot and see the effect of the wind on your shot so 20 shots will be shot at 600 so 20 times you will give your best wind guess and shoot and each shot will give you an answer as to whether or not your guess was correct or not. Shooting at 600 or more yards every shot probably will be a little different so to think a person can lay down and accuratety give a wind call within 1/2 min and have it work good luck. We shot what we called the rattle battle at camp perry during the national championships which was a very fast rapid fire event in which 4 or 5 shooters would shoot 20 to 25 shots each starting at 600 yds then at 500 yds then at 300 and if they still had ammo left at 200 yds. The coaches and better wind callers would all confer before the shooting started and all give their best guess then the shooters would lay down starting at 600 and the targets would pop up and the shooters would shoot all their shots then when the time limit was up, I think it was a minute the targets would go down and be scored only hits in a silhouette target counted so if the wind call was off by more than 1 1/2 minutes it was possible to have no hits and nobody knew if the wind call was correct untill after the shooting was over. It was great fun and the best wind callers there is , people who also were on the palma team, the army marksmanship unit, the marins corp team, the national guard team, and teams fromm many states shot un this. one year our junior team which was 50% young ladies beat the marine corp team who was gracious enough to congratulate them due to a better wind call. It was rare to see a wind call better than 3/4 min and there are no better in the world than some of these people. check with local ranges and go to matches at long range there is absolutely no way better than experience to learn to read the wind and it is not static I can't count the number of times I have been caught in a switch, when you put on a minute or a minute and a half and the wind switches during the shot then you can be off by 3 minutes, the minute and a half you put on the gun and the minute and a half you needed for the other direction.

 

[skipglo]

dfanonymous,

I am not trying to over simplify the solution. I was simply trying to limit the 37 typical responses of "get a Kestrel XXXX with no other information". I wanted to really understand the non-windmeter part.

My whole purpose for asking the question is I understand how important the wind is and how difficult itis to be good at it.

And don't forget CANT....add that to wind and even a no wind day and look out. Mirage is great if you can see it but grass, leaves and branches are pretty much as good if you cannot...just me..another tool.

 

[Barbourcreek]

I shoot highpower a lot and there is only one way to learn wind calling its called shooting when ever you can at long range. I think the best item to use for wind reading is the mirage and to get the best wind guess you have to shoot and see results. I have pitched many times in this forum for people to come out and shoot in matches here when they have 600,800,900,and 1000 yd matches then you can get accurate sight settings for elevation and maybe depending on the day no wind zero's and every shot will be marked so each time you shoot you will use whatever dope you have, for me mostly the mirage and shoot and see the effect of the wind on your shot so 20 shots will be shot at 600 so 20 times you will give your best wind guess and shoot and each shot will give you an answer as to whether or not your guess was correct or not. Shooting at 600 or more yards every shot probably will be a little different so to think a person can lay down and accuratety give a wind call within 1/2 min and have it work good luck. We shot what we called the rattle battle at camp perry during the national championships which was a very fast rapid fire event in which 4 or 5 shooters would shoot 20 to 25 shots each starting at 600 yds then at 500 yds then at 300 and if they still had ammo left at 200 yds. The coaches and better wind callers would all confer before the shooting started and all give their best guess then the shooters would lay down starting at 600 and the targets would pop up and the shooters would shoot all their shots then when the time limit was up, I think it was a minute the targets would go down and be scored only hits in a silhouette target counted so if the wind call was off by more than 1 1/2 minutes it was possible to have no hits and nobody knew if the wind call was correct untill after the shooting was over. It was great fun and the best wind callers there is , people who also were on the palma team, the army marksmanship unit, the marins corp team, the national guard team, and teams fromm many states shot un this. one year our junior team which was 50% young ladies beat the marine corp team who was gracious enough to congratulate them due to a better wind call. It was rare to see a wind call better than 3/4 min and there are no better in the world than some of these people. check with local ranges and go to matches at long range there is absolutely no way better than experience to learn to read the wind and it is not static I can't count the number of times I have been caught in a switch, when you put on a minute or a minute and a half and the wind switches during the shot then you can be off by 3 minutes, the minute and a half you put on the gun and the minute and a half you needed for the other direction.

 

[Barbourcreek]

Cram give me a call
Eagle Ballistics 615-308-8498
James